Porh Punz Battery, Coastal artillery battery in Gâvres, France
Porh Punz is a coastal battery in Gâvres with four stone casemates built along the peninsula facing the sea. The installation controlled access to Port-Louis harbor and created a defensive strongpoint with its walls against attacks from the water.
The battery was built in 1695 on orders from the Marquis de Lavardin to defend the maritime zone with ten cannons and two mortars. During World War II, German forces added concrete reinforcements and underground shelters that extended the original structure.
The battery shows how France sought to protect its coasts and what role such forts played in the region's daily life and security. People worked here as soldiers and engineers, and the structure represented confidence in defending the harbor and nearby communities.
Visitors can enter the four casemates located within the municipal campsite grounds and explore the outer walls from there. The best time to visit is in good weather to see the coastal landscape fully and understand the sea routes that were once protected.
The battery clearly shows traces of two different defense eras, with German concrete structures standing alongside the original 17th-century stone walls. Seeing this shift between building styles helps understand how warfare and defense tactics changed across centuries.
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